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Ril Veius
"Why can it never be easy?"'- Ril, the thought that goes trough his mind at least one per day. '' The Grimly Optimistic Grand Summoner Ril Veius is a young grimly optimistic half-Elf ''half-Human turned Summoner that became a Dungeon Keeper due to a series of unfortunate events. Do to not being evil by any means, he now maintains the alter ego of "Merlin" which he uses as his Dungeon Keeper persona. Abilities and Skills Dungeon Keeper As a Dungeon Keeper bound to a Dungeon Heart, Ril has access to an immense pool of mana as well as all the standard Dungeon Keeper abilities and weaknesses. While Ril avoids using more sinister abilities like Dungeon Keeper Possession due to bad past experiences and general distaste, he has become immensely proficient at making use of the Keeper Hand. Even reaching a level that beats out some other Dungeon Keepers. Overwhelming mana Even not factoring in the mana pool of his Dungeon Heart Ril still possesses an enormous mana capacity. His own sorcerous powers granting him a wellspring of magical energy that, thanks to his unique training regime and peculiar birthright, would not lose to even masters of the arcane arts. To widen the gap between what should be possible for his age even further the mysterious magical tattoo on his right forearm serves as an additional mana reservoir, meaning that Ril has a total of three separate mana pools. Sorcery Since the events that transpired on his seventeenth birthday Ril has awakened to his sorcerous powers and has become a Summoner. This Sorcery allows him to form Summoning Contracts with magical, otherworldly or even legendary beings. Currently Ril possesses contracts with: * "Bark", a Grim Hound (Medium rank Spirit) * "White", the Spirit of the Albion Mist (Great Spirit Lord rank Spirit) * "Granny Hill", the Lord of the Southern Mountains of Albion (Spirit Lord rank Spirit) * Nimue, the Dryad of Avalon and Ril's familiar Due to the numerous life and death situations Ril has been trough, memories of Summoning Magic taken from Mordred and diligent training (along with his vast mana capacity) Ril has achieved the power of a Grand Master of Summoning. But even so, he is very cautious of the inherent risks the Sorcery entails, making it a point to rely on thoroughly investigated (and most of the times archaic, even by the standards of ancient beings) rites and rituals to Summon and forge Summoning contracts. That does not however, prevent him from complaining about the strange and downright esoteric regents required for these rituals to anybody willing to listen. But contrary to the time-consuming process which is the actual establishment of the contracts, Ril has succeeded in developing a very expedient method for their actual invocation. This was done mostly out of necessity then anything else, as a myriad of very painful physical injuries has proven to him that the Horned Reaper, or anybody else that bares any intent to impale, skewer or chew him, would not wait for him to finish a lengthy incantation that requires a ridiculous pile of implements and a meticulously drawn magic circle. After an immense amount of work he has developed a method inspired by the work of the Demon Binder of The Balors Eye (the Summoner that, next to Obadon the Red, has the most influence on Ril's style of magic) that can be cast within seconds. The method does have flaws however: * This method essentially boils down to getting the Summoned creature to preform a certain, often limited in scope, action in return for a specified payment. As such, it only costs a fraction of the mana of a full Summon but has a very limited duration and a very short effective range. * This method is comes with strict conditions that Ril must abide by else the spell simply fail. These conditions are defined between Ril and the being he intends to Summon during the contract creating process or any of their meetings thereafter and can include (but are not limited to) when and were is allowed is/forbidden to Summon them, the details regarding payment, the purpose the Summoned being is lending its power for, etc. * Ril must possess the Summoned beings unique (and often quite complex) magic circle on person as a focus for the spell. Ril personally prefers to use metal plates engraved with the sorcerous patterns that he himself engraved, and goes everywhere with them hung from his belt via a small chain. * Ril must vocally invoke a short chant and be able move mana trough his body without interruption. Moreover, the chant itself is strictly defined, unchangeable and, by Ril's own words: "really embarrassing". The chant itself goes as follows: '''''I am the key and the gate by our contract forged of spirit and blood In the name of Merlin I do invoke: (_______________) With the last line of the chant containing the name of the service being invoked. Domain Magic Ril is the creator of Domain Magic, a kind of Magic based on the Spiritual Realms created by Spirits and loosely based on the divine realms made by God's. This magic allows Ril to create Domains where the laws of the physical world can be altered to a degree, giving him control of this space and an advantage over all other beings within it. The larger the domain and/or the more extreme the changes from mundane realty within the realm the more mana, concentration and skill to maintain it. The chant for Ril's basic domain spell goes as follows: I am the key and the gate. I shall cede to you the land and I shall cede to you the waters. But before you stands my domain -'' ''a world of endless blue sky! The Memories of Mordred Shortly after he became a Dungeon Keeper Ril used Keeper Possession to pry away Mordred's memories in search of the method of creating Dungeon Hearts. This process took away a centuries worth of experiences from the warlock and implanted them in Ril's mind. Ever since, Ril has had access to Mordred's vast wealth of arcane knowledge. This, of course, including the secret method behind the creation of Dungeon Hearts. The knowledge did however come at a cost. The dark energies of the Dungeon Heart stimulating memories where Ril would feel just as Mordred felt during his acts of unimaginable cruelty cause Ril to have frequent nightmares and even, at times, question if his own thoughts are truly his own or just a result of Mordred's experience. At one point he even went so far as to say that he was scared that he would "lose himself and become a monster" if he let his guard down. Wizardry While Ril did, at a point, study Wizardry alongside his Summoning Magic he has since shunned the idea, even going so far as to completely rearrange his magical circuits. By his account, studying and preforming magic this way tapped in too much into Mordred's memories and so in order to maintain his peace of mind he gave up from that path and chose to focus on developing his Summoning Magic. Magical Gardening In his pursuit of a way to maintain his sense of self, and also to create a place where he could unwind from the daily stress, Ril has taken up botany. But, as can be expected of the garden of a Dungeon Keeper, it houses no ordinary plants. Numerous species native to Zyreema, the Underworld, Albion and even the island of Nakiridaani can be found within Ril's garden, carefully taken care of by the young Summoner who has gotten fairly good at taking care of the exotic plants. Blacksmithing Though very much out of practice Ril did grow up as an apprentice to a blacksmith. While currently he only uses this skill and the dexterity associated with it to help him with creating his metal plates engraved with his Summoning circles and the occasional od job, at a certain point in time Ril was good enough to give his Dungeon's Craftstrolls a run for their money. This does raise quite a few questions about his foster-father, whom Ril learned smithing from, but Ril has yet to notice the implications. The Rise of Merlin Death of Mina Veius Raised by his human mother, Mina Veius, Ril Veius grew up as a peculiarity within the small village of Wustershire. Elves on Albion are so rare that a person, and even several generations of that persons descendants, could go without ever seeing one for their whole lives, as such, accounts of a half-elf child in a village as remote as Wustershire are usually met with raised eyebrows and an inquiry of mental well-being. Since he never even so much as knew his fathers name and was avoided by the rest of the children in the village Ril's mother was his whole world. They lived together in a small run down single room house near the edge of the village and, despite barely getting by, were happy. Mina even managed to teach her son how to read and write during this period. But on an especially cold winter, 11 years prior to Mordred's invasion of Albion, things changed when Mina's health took a turn for the worst. The harsh weather and shortage of many basic living necessities (such as food and medicine) took its toll on the whole village and by the peak of the cold season Mina collapsed due to overwork and malnutrition. Ril spent days pounding on doors all over the village asking for help, but the lack of supplies had hit everyone equally and no one could spare any medicine or food, lest they took it out of the mouths of their own family members. Seeing that was not working Ril went to pray at the villages oversized Church of St. Georg, hoping that The Light, in all its wisdom, would not let a person as kind or as compassionate as his mother be felled by disease. Finally, Ril locked himself in with his mother and did whatever he could for her, watching over her even during her final moments. Growing up After his mother was buried in the village cemetery and the seasons began to change, it was decided that Ril would be taken in by the local blacksmith and former adventurer William McCloud. Though "taken in" might have been an overstatement as far as Ril was concerned. Ril slept in a patched up shed behind the smithy, so small that he could not even stretch out in it fully as he slept. He was given what he needed to survive and nothing more, often being worked to the bone in order to "earn his keep". McCloud was a heavy drinker and he had no love for Ril whatsoever, something that Ril was reminded of by frequent trips to the local liquor shop just as they earned even a bit of money from a job and the occasional bottle narrowly missing his head. It was around this period that Ril began to hide his distinctive elf ears under a bandanna, all the while being shunned by everyone in the village. All the communication he had with anybody else kept the absolute minimum the villagers could possibly muster. So much so that, in comparison to them, McCloud seemed almost chatty. But few good things did happen to him during this period as well. Sort of... it was a matter of perspective really and Ril's bar was set very low. Ril eventually even managed (after several failed attempts) to slowly gather a grand total of 12 silver and 46 copper coins by giving his foster-father watered down booze. He hoped that he could gather at least twice that and then leave the village...but then came his seventeenth birthday, and Ril's "everyday life" was shattered. The heirloom ring his mother left him ebbed in power as it fused with his right hand and became an elaborate red tattoo that went all the way up to his forearm, while a green sigil of a different design began to flicker on his forehead. Upon noticing Ril's pain filled screaming McCloud (in one of his moments of rare half-sobriety) bore witness to the magic marking Ril and decided that he would not be taking chances with whatever dark forces the boy had called. Ril soon found running trough winding forest paths in the dead of night himself trying to escape an angry mob and eventually, thanks to much effort, edible weeds and Grim Hound that Ril creatively named "Bark", managed to find his way to the city of Evercalm a nearly two weeks later - hoping to find work in the militia being gathered to combat the warlord that began to raid the countryside. For all further information involving Ril's history and actions see "The Journal of an Overlord" Personality Ril is an earnest, hardworking and peace loving individual thrown into a position where he must constantly deceive and battle others, often with his very life (and eternal Soul) on the line. He has long since gotten used to fate kicking him while he is down. Ril and misfortune For as long as he has known about himself he has been plagued by an almost ridiculous amount of misfortune, this in turn has caused him to develop a slew of (sometimes very peculiar) coping mechanisms. First up, Ril always desperately seeks to look at things from a bright side (no matter how much listeners are put off by his, often very grim comparisons). "Well, luckily for me, the Dragon attack only fractured my ribs - not shattered them." Second up, while Ril often mopes or complains about the bad things that happen to him he never dwells on them for too long as, if he did, he would never run out of things to whine about. Instead he unloads all of his thoughts and frustrations on any would-be listener all at once, feeling refreshed and willing to tackle new challenges afterwards. Ril and work Ril has a very straightforward and earnest work ethic, firmly believing that great results will only come to those who put in an equivalent amount of effort. After coming into his position as a Dungeon Keeper Ril worked himself to the brink of exhaustion (and beyond) on several occasions till it was made clear to him (by his resident Head Warlock) that he is not allowed to work with anything remotely magical unless he gets a proper amount of rest. Since then, thanks to his ability to restore his physical vigor via the Dungeon Hearts Magic (a technique that may be unique to Ril) the young Keeper has settled into a routine that, while impossible for normal humans, works well for him and (to the joy of several other people in the Dungeon) significantly reduces the chance of him destroying their home in a half-asleep state. But while Ril spares no effort on his own part in his quest to get his soul back he feels guilty about pushing a similar workload on others. He gets very happy when he sees his employees trying their hardest but makes it a point to remind them not to overdo it and to get proper amounts of nutrition and relaxation (sometimes with a visibly worried facial expression). However his "norm" for work makes this a difficult habit to abuse by any minion looking to get off easy. Ril did, for better or for worse, grow up in an environment where working from sun up till sun down was the basic of basics. As long as you fulfill your quota he will tell you "well done", if you go above and beyond that he will praise you and hand you some candy, but if you get found out slacking off then be ready for a lecture and a finger wagging. Ril and wealth Despite being a Dungeon Keeper and having access to immense wealth Ril still earns next to nothing. Growing up in counting every copper and rationing food so they would not starve during winter has given him a very frugal personality. While he has gotten used to the large expenditures on the sake of the Dungeon or for the sake of research he still measures his own personal expenditures the same way he always has, feeling intense pangs of guilt if he tries to justify spending money on himself (which also speaks about his low self esteem mentioned in Ril and people). Pralines don't count though - they are a necessary expense. Ril and faith Ril does not like the Gods, he might talk a big game about how they are "contradictory, unnecessary heavy-handed...." but at the core of it his issue is much simpler then that. He simply can't find it in himself to forgive The Light for not helping him and, more importantly, his mother in their times of need. He respects the lessons his mother taught him regarding the 8 Virtues and how he should always treat others kindly if he expects to receive kindness, but a petty (or even downright childish) grudge keeps him from turning to The Light for anything He also dislikes the Dark Gods on a matter of principle then anything else, despising the way they toy with people for their own gains and spread misery and destruction simply for some kind of sadistic satisfaction. "I am not going to pray, I have already pleaded to the Heavens enough for a lifetime. If I have time to waste putting my hands together I'd rather use it getting actual work done." Ril and food One of the rare luxuries that Ril affords himself since becoming a Dungeon Keeper is the enjoyment of Brugly's cooking. Meat was a rare once-a-year treat before while he was growing up so it is no surprise that he becomes overjoyed every "Meaty Monday". His absolute favorite food however, is an a rather unusual treat from the Underworld. Small chocolate candies with a rather peculiar filling made from ingredients that would turn most surface dwellers faces pale have somehow become an acquired taste for the young Ril, who eats a few every day after lunch without missing a day. He has a box of these pralines stashed away in the kitchen (safe from goblin hands) meant for his exclusive use. Ril and animals Ril loves animals - but animals do not like him. Rather, their feeling towards him vary from avoidance to downright animosity. Ever since he could remember he has been avoided by animals and it has only gotten worse since he became a Dungeon Keeper. Unless he is actively suppressing his mana wildlife will try to hurry out of his presence in the same way people would try to flee the site of an oncoming natural disaster. Ril and getting mad When Ril is happy or sad his face shows it quite openly - not so for getting mad. Being raised in an abusive household has left him with an unhealthy tendency to never openly express anger (derived from having no choice but to quietly take his step-fathers violence and unreasonable behavior). Instead he, almost unconsciously, begins acting very passive aggressive when mad. Careful observation will usually give hints that he is just slightly ticked but during cases when he is really mad his face will harden into a smile and his voice will soften but his mana will begin going wild all around him, the dark mana from the Dungeon Heart warping nearby shadows and making his eyes beam with a red glow. On a single occasion when the Horned Reaper grievously injured several minions the Dungeon Heart began to drum furiously as Dark Mana thickened around the Ril until it formed a terrifying, demonic looking silhouette all around the Keeper, all the while Ril's face never broke from the hardened smile while the two clashed with an intensity that quaked the Dungeon. Since then, Ril's plan to get on friendly terms with his Minions has suffered a "minor setback" of all of them having a deeply rooted fear of their Dungeon Keeper. Ril and insecurity Growing up in an environment where your very existence is being rejected was not very good for Ril's sense of self worth. He is very insecure about himself and unconsciously places other peoples well being above his own not solely do to kindness or virtue but do to the fact that he considers himself simply worth less then others. This has gotten better over time though and Ril has, since leaving his village, built up a lot more confidence. But he still unconsciously relies quite a bit on "props" to maintain this under the pretense of "dressing up right for the right occasion". To this end his wardrobe contains quite a few over-the-top outfits such as his exploration suit, his blacksmithing clothes and his iconic Merlin robes which he has in several colors for specific occasions. No where is this self bolstering more evident then when he begins to wear his Merlin mask where the change in personality becomes evident to anyone even remotely familiar with Ril. As "Merlin" Ril does not have his usual thick south-Albion accent and carries himself with an air of regal self-confidence - in stark contrast to his usual behavior. Showing that Ril has drawn a clear line between how he behaves and how "The Ancient Keeper Merlin" behaves. Ril and friends Ril never made friends for the whole of his life - or at least he thought at least. Due to the environment in which he grew up and the fierce inferiority complex it brought about (See "Ril and insecurities") Ril has a very unrealistically ideal notion for what a "friend" is. There was an occasion in Ril's youth where he "made a friend" - but remembering the events of that specific summer invoke a kind of terror in him that was comparable to meeting the Horned Reaper for the first time. So represses those memories to an almost desperate degree. After he was chased out of his village he thought that he finally had a chance to make some friends but due to his entire party dieing at the hands of the Horned Reaper that dream was cut rather short. Since becoming a Keeper he has been trying to make friends with the people of the Dungeon but their Keeper-Minion relationship causes everyone to interact with him with the same level of caution that a person would have when handling a natural disaster about to happen. Preventing any and all of the people working for him to open up to him for fear of getting punished or killed by their Dungeon Keeper. The exceptions to this rule being his closest circle of advisers (aka The Party) with whom he is significantly closer. Henry Mason in particular is the first person to ever outright call himself a friend to Ril. Merlin's Garden Ril comes under a lot of stress on a daily basis. Knowing that over half The World wants you dead and gone due to you being an agent of Evil and the rest want you dead because they want to size down the competition is not a pleasant thought to have as soon as you wake up every morning. Add onto that his responsibilities as the boss of the Dungeon and his internal struggle against the Dungeon Hearts evil power and Mordred's memories and you get a recipe for a nervous breakdown waiting to happen. This led Ril to seek a good way to blow off steam and, after the events when The Party first experimented with Corruption - the creation of his garden. His mother always had a love of plants and loved decorating their hovel with seasonal flowers whenever possible. What memories he had of going with his mother to pick flowers outside the village and watching her smiling while taking care of them inspiring him to pick up gardening, starting from the sole flower that he slaved over to keep alive that bloomed on the eighth day after he became a Keeper. However, being a Keeper that he is, this garden soon took on a life of its own. Getting more and more engrossed in his hobby he acquired a fair amount of magical plants from Nakiridaani, Albion, Zyreema and even the Underworld. The jewel of the garden being Nimue, the very fist flower he planted that has since become his summon and familiar. He occasionally goes to chat with the Witch of The North Forest over tea about gardening tips. Complicated family circumstances Ril's heritage is a.....sensitive issue. Till this day, nobody in the Dungeon has had the lack of tact to pry into why their Keeper will adamantly refer to himself as a "half-Human" instead a half-Elf and make a point of always hiding his ears behind his iconic black bandanna or a hood (except Henry). Ril might, on occasion, speak about his mother. His love for her can be felt every time he begins reciting fond memories of when she was alive. As far as his father goes...it is a fairly known fact among the people closer to him that that particular can of worms is best left unopened. Though, he has been pondering if "half-human" might not be appropriate for him. After the events of The Spirit Quest he discovered that his mother was touched by the power of The Spirit Of The Southern Mountains, making "Granny Hill" his great godmother (Or his grandmother? He himself is not sure how that works.). For now, he has decided to answer "it's complicated" if the question ever comes up. Perhaps it is due to these complex feelings that Ril tends to treat children with a lot of care, trying to approach them like an older brother figure (even if this tends to backfire more often then not as he treats them with far too much familiarity then they would like) The Keeper of the Misty Isle "Merlin" is fairly well connected among the Spirits of Albion. After he made it a point to get in touch with as many Spirits as he feasibly could during the events of Merlin's life threatening tea parties he has tried to maintain friendly relations between himself and the more mystical side of Albion. Of course, he get along with some more then others. * Nimue: His familiar and a child that Ril dotes far too much, even taking his normal behavior towards kids into account. The two are joined via Magic with a very deep bond and when on Avalon it is rare to see them apart from one another. He is trying his best to raise her into a morally upstanding individual. * Witch of the North Forest: Much closer to "mortal understanding" then the rest of the local Spirits (possibly because she may have been a mortal at some point), Merlin gets along quite well with her (calling her by the nickname "North") and usually uses meetings with her as an excuse to slack off a well-deserved break from the many responsibilities he sees to day in and day out. Just like with all the other Spirits of Albion he never takes off his mask around her and always addresses himself as "Merlin" because he feels that, should a situation come to pass where he would get declared an enemy of The Light Church of Albion, he would want her and the rest to be able to cut ties with him at a moments notice - lest their connection with him cause friction between them and the people of the land. * Cat Sith: Ril has never gotten along well with animals (see "Ril and animals" above) and it shows especially with Cat Sith and his kin. Ril barely managed to gain entry into the hidden Cat village that is inside the Lord Spirit's Spiritual Realm the first time and was made to be very aware that the cats there are not his greatest fans. Cat Sith's fickle personality is not something that Ril finds rather annoying at the best of times and he is well aware that the only thing he can get out of a conversation between them is a faceful of the monster cat's smoke from its iconic pipe (unless he brought a substantial amount of Nakiridaani Silvervine as a bribe a token of his appreciation to the Lord). * Spirit of the Southern Mountains: "Granny Hill" as she is known by many of the Spirits of Albion is respected throughout the island - and for good reason. Being able to go from a kind grandmother to a natural disaster in the span of a heartbeat, Ril can barely stand up to his great-godmother and tends to turn meek like a kitten when in her presence. He visits her regularly to check up on her condition (as she is still suffering from the side-effects from his Dungeon's Corruption) and to converse with "dear ol' Granny" as she insists he calls her, talking with her about the recent happenings on in his life. * Queen of Cold Air and Darkness: To his surprise, North told him that he left quite a positive impression on the Queen of Winter during his first visit and that she and her daughters have taken quite a liking to him - describing him as "the liveliest chase they had in a while". Not something that he is happy about as most people the Queen "takes a liking to" tend to get spirited away and never heard from again. Or turn up in the next snowstorm as man-shaped ice sculptures. Either fate something that the Summoner would choose to avoid. Ril chooses to be extremely respectful, even when compared to other Spirits, when interacting with her. * The Green Man of Albion: Not a chatty one. Also, particularly hard to find. The Green Man, in theory, exists on Albion away from the prying eyes of people and wherever life is in abundance. This made tracking him down the first time a nightmare as the only way to find him is to follow a trail of blossoming flowers and vibrant greenery that has a habit of abruptly ending and resuming on a completely different corner of the island. Even after finding the large shambling humanoid, seemingly made up of all forms of thickets, tree-bark and flowers - he did not get much conversation. The Green Man all but refused to acknowledged Merlin presence when they met, forcing the mage to say his well wishes and leave his gift basket. What Ril discovered later, thanks to Granny Hill informing him, was that this was a very fortunate meeting for the Summoner - as he probably only just barely managed to make it out alive. After hearing the details about the Green Man and how he functions that North left out (probably as a form of test or as a practical joke) Ril has made a decision to regard the Spirit with extreme caution from then on out. Category:Player Characters Category:Dungeon Keepers Category:Summoning Category:Avalon